Council talks trash service

Barberton City Council heard from each of the companies that went out to bid to provide trash and recycle pick up services; Republic Services and Kimble Recycling and Disposal.

Representatives from both companies shared their services for all of council during the Committee of the Whole Meeting.

Both companies said they could offer unlimited trash pickup, their drivers will get out of trucks to get bins for residents who cannot put them on the curb and updated technology will improve or enhance their services.

Don Johnson, business development manager at Kimble, said each city they contract with has a profile for the drivers and call centers so they know what the guidelines of the contract are.

Johnson said all their trucks have computer systems with maps and addresses of each house so if a resident calls in, they can see their profile and any previous complaints. Permanent notes can be assigned to each address and viewed by drivers like if bins are at the side of the house instead of on the curb. Their service would cost $19 per month this year and would increase gradually to $20.86 by 2022.

Next council members had questions for Republic. Area Municipal Services Manager Terry Thompson said they appreciate servicing Barberton for the last five years see a new contract as an opportunity to improve. The city has two options, limited service for a monthly cost of $16.75 this year and $18.49 by 2022 and for unlimited it would cost $18.75 this year and $20.94 by 2022. The city’s current rate with Republic is $16.25.

Thompson said they will be using a map-based system but it will not include individual addresses but that is something they are looking at for the future.

They said that customers will be able to use a mobile app to skip the step of calling into the center and having to wait to talk with someone.

“I think that and the route based system will really clean up some of what I understand to be some of the service issues and provide people other tools to communicate and get their problems resolved,” said Thompson.

Republic would assign a supervisor to each municipality’s contract for continuous communication. In addition, Republic will offer a mobile app to customers to skip the step of calling into the center and having to wait to talk with someone.

Carla Debevec, councilwoman at-large, said, “What is our assurance that these problems are going to be solved?” She informed them that her trash is frequently left since she lives where people park on the street and block her bins. They said that the map-based system will allow them to pinpoint where there are recurring issues.

Debevec said they are asking her and the residents to trust something they have had bad service with for several years.

In other business, council discussed allowing the Planning Department to use $30,000 to make improvements the old Burger King building, 101 E. Tuscarawas Ave., to prepare it for a new business to move in. Director of Planning and Community Development Joseph Stefan said this money will be used to take out walls that do not serve as supports, take out the drive through windows and more. He said there is interest in the property.

Council also talked about using $9,250 for the abatement and demolition of 255 Glenn St., a condemned house. This and other legislation will be voted on in an upcoming meeting.

23 Comments

It sounds to me like the people demand better services from Republic. This seems to be an issue all over with services these days. I’m still looking for someone to have something significant to say about a company or an experience they had while making a purchase and it seems everything is negative.

I am also glad that we are getting new service. I waited 3 weeks to get my trash picked up in December. I had to call channel 8 to get results. It was only after they contaced Republic for comment that we had 4 trucks in our pick up area.I called the call centers and one women told me I should put the trash in my trunk and take it to republic. I laughed and said then why do I pay them? I did talk to some od the drivers and they were just as frustrated as we were but because of the bottom line they were being pulled off the clock after 12 hour shifts. But I understand its still no excuse for crappy service.

Your local leadership was aware of this problem and did very little to correct the issue. They are as much to blame as the trash company itself. FYI… republic is owned by waste management, so enuff of the waste management talk.
Kimble is family owned out of Dover and they seem to be a bit smallish. Not certain how well they will do with this large of a town right out of the gate. This city should be hiring and doing it’s own trash service like some other local intelligent communities. We have plenty of $ for norton sewers but no $ to buy garbage trucks and road resurfacing equipment? These investments ** could ** save the community millions over the long haul but…….. it’s easier to write checks 🙁

I guess I am the only one who liked waste management. I am a side door client. I put the can at the side of my garage door and they pick it up. They even talk to me if I am out. My mother had Kimble when she lived in Norton. At that time she could put any size can out. She was also a side door client. She did have problems with them. If you had complaints
you could not call Kimble. You had to call the city of Barberton. The one thing I don’t need is TWO cans.

I really think that the city should go back to waste management service they way you can put anything out and they will take it and you can use your on cans also that will take away people putting trash in empty lots around they city think about its time for change in tired of fixing my mail box from the driver who keeping hitting my box

This trash service is a huge joke! What ever happened to Waste Management? At least if they forgot to pick up the trash on your scheduled day, they would come back the very next day to get it.
I bet they pick the Mayors trash on time.

It’s time for a change. Republic needs to go. The guy threw away our trash been about a month ago so I called that same day to get a new one and the lady told me “as a one time courtesy I wouldn’t be charged for the bin”. I told her they wouldn’t be charging me for any bins as long as the dude keeps throwing the stupid things in the trash truck. So she said due to the holiday it wouldn’t get here until the following Tuesday, we’ll Tuesday rolled around and not only did we not get the new bin our recycling didn’t get picked up. So I called republic again and told them again what happened and also told them that the recycling hadn’t even been picked up. They apologized again and sent someone out with the new trash bin and to empty the recycle bin. There was no excuse for this poor service but do you think we’d get any credit on our bills from the city. No freaking way but let someone be late on their payments to the city and they charge you for that. No justice in that.

I have lived in Barberton for the last 12 years, and remember when we had unlimited pickup. I believe that it would be a great morale boost for the people of our city to have that back, preferably with Kimble. Speaking for myself, I am part of a working class household. When we have the good fortune to be able to replace our worn out furniture, vacuum cleaners, fixtures, etc., it is an extra burden and stressor to have to either hang on to our old junk until bulk pickup week, or fork over extra money. Having an efficient, functional system for disposing of our extra waste is motivation to continue improving our homes, and, by extension, our lives.

Republic is missed my trash pickup in August. I called everyday and was told they would be out the next day. The smell was so bad and the bin so heavy, I had to leave it at the curb. I’ve never had such bad service! They knew they were going to get paid regardless of what they did and how they acted. I hope we go back to Kimble!

I am so sick of Republic. If they do manage to pick up my trash, they leave the trash cans either in the street or the middle of the driveway so that I can’t pull in after work. They drop trash in the street or on the devil strip and leave it there. I would rather pay a few dollars more for unlimited service if I can actually get service. BTW my trash has been here for 2 weeks now. Will they refuse to pick it up because it is too full now? I barely got the trash cans down the ice without falling 2x only to drag them back because they weren’t picked up.

I am tired of the issues with Republic and even more tired of limited service. I have to plan cleaning a room out based on Republics schedule. And one item or three extra bags a couple of times a year doesn’t cut it.

Throughout their run republic has shown that they don’t have what it takes to match what Kimble is offering the citizens of Barberton. On top of the limited pickup which is a joke the citizens of Barberton have been getting messed with by the trash companies. Over the past month my trash was missed 3 times resulting in 2 calls to have it picked up. The 3rd time it wasn’t worth it to me to call in. The last time that they skipped me I called and they came and picked up only my trash but skipped the recycle bin which was so full that it was almost overflowing and the top was not on it. The recycle bin sat on the curb for another week until they finally decided to pick up my recycling. We need a better option we need to switch to Kimble.

it is worth 2 or 3 dollars a month more for unlimited pickup. as for Republic getting out of the trucks to get trash cans. they can’t even get out to stand them up or close them in the rain. I think Kimble is our better choice. you get what you pay for.